Save Him
by AaronAlive575
Summary: Who were the children that came before Frisk? How did they meet their ends? A young boy finds himself in a world of monsters where those that dwell there think humans are the true monsters. Battling for his life, and more importantly, his own soul, he'll go on a journey to try and save his lost friend before it is too late.
1. Find Him

A young boy stood on the edge of the gaping hole, stretched open like a mouth ready to swallow him. He stared down into the nothingness, gray eyes unfocused and wide with pain. Tears streamed down his cheeks and fell into the darkness below, each catching one last ray of light before disappearing forever. A cold mountain breeze ruffled his dark hair but he didn't so much as shiver, far too focused on the abyss spread before him.

It was his fault. He had been the one who'd dared Dane to go up on the cursed mountain. Of course he'd known that Dane would never back down to a challenge. But he had never believed in curses or monsters himself, so he hadn't known that his friend would never come back down at all. Maybe this hole right here was how he had died. Dane wasn't the most graceful person, so perhaps he had tripped and fell, like the boy's tears, out of existence.

The child let out a loud sob, his entire body shaking from the force of it. He could barely breath, his throat was so swollen. It felt like it would explode from the pressure. But the pain in his neck couldn't compare to the pain that had claimed every ounce of his being. His stomach was filled with solid lead, his ribs were cracking, his head was split open, and his legs felt as though they couldn't support the weight of all this for another second. It was his fault! He had killed his friend, his only friend. The only person who'd ever cared about him was gone and it was all his fault. His heart shriveled up inside of him, contracting more and more each second with ever increasing agony.

He couldn't withstand the pain, the guilt, the loneliness. With shaking hands he opened his notebook and ripped out a carefully written page. Old tears had already blotted the ink, and fresh ones smudged it further. Hastily, the boy placed the page on a flat bit of ground, putting a rock on top to keep it from blowing away. A small, miserable smile curled around his lips as he thought of how no one would probably ever find it. No one would care enough to go searching for him.

He let out a choking laugh, turning back to the void. It looked peaceful, welcoming even. A promise of release from his misery. And maybe even a chance to be with Dane once more, if there was some sort of afterlife. But the boy didn't believe in fairy tales, so all he sought to find was that sweet, blissful nothing.

He didn't raise his eyes for one final look at the sky. He didn't utter meaningless last words to be heard by no one. Instead, his gaze never wavering from the darkness below, he took a single step, almost as if he had expected to find solid ground beneath it. For a moment time stopped as he teetered on the edge, but then gravity took its inevitable toll and the boy plunged into the depths below.

He was surprised at the sensation of falling. That step off the cliff had felt so final that he'd almost expected to die the moment his feet left steady ground. His stomach felt as though it was trying to force its way out through his throat and his heart had stopped completely. Pure, electric terror filled his veins as his survival instincts kicked in. An unnatural screeching sliced into his eardrums alongside the sound of rushing air. His mind didn't spare the effort in realizing the screeching was coming from his own throat. He couldn't even feel regret at his choice. All that the boy could think of was survival. Even though at this point it was far too late, his blood pumped adrenaline through him and his head repeated the same instinct over and over: survive.

Suddenly, in his blind panic, the boy saw something far below him. With each second it was growing bigger and bigger, rushing up to meet him at terrifying speed. He only had time for one thought before his body hit the ground with a snap and everything went dark.

"Gold."

"Oh dear," a voice cut into the shadows. "Are you hurt, Mar?" Something white and large began to form before the boy. He blinked slowly, slightly aware of a numbing pain in his back. The thing almost appeared to be glowing in the relative darkness. Was this the afterlife? Dread coursed through his body and he slumped back down, shutting his eyes to the wave of pain that washed through his head. He clutched at his temples, gritting his teeth. All he had wanted to do was to stop existing.

"Mar? Can you hear me?" the voice sounded concerned.

The boy slowly opened his eyes once more, waiting for his vision to adjust in the dim light. The figure swam in front of him before finally settling into place. He jumped at the sight, half expecting it to have been an angel. Instead, the thing peering down at him wasn't even human. It had big eyes, long ears, and was covered all over in white fur. The boy recoiled, inching backwards.

"It's okay," the thing smiled reassuringly. "I won't hurt you. My name is Toriel. May I ask what yours is?"

He studied her closely, narrowing his eyes. She was very tall, at least three times his height, but she seemed friendly enough. Making up his mind, the boy answered. "I'm Mar." He looked around him, trying to see in the poor light. They appeared to be in a cave of some sorts. "Where am I?"

"This is the underground. I'm sure you must have heard about this place in your history books," Toriel beamed down at him. "The other children have told me that the humans tell stories of the war."

History? Underground? War? What was she-

Suddenly it all connected in Mar's mind. The old legends of the war with monsters. But those had been myths... hadn't they?

"So are you a-?" Mar didn't finish his sentence, feeling it would be rude to call someone a monster.

"A monster?" Toriel finished for him, not seeming to hold any offense in the title. "Of course!" She spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Baffled by all this, Mar attempted to get to his feet. He'd barely risen halfway when his numbness seemed to shatter like ice and the pain from his fall came pouring over him. His head throbbed with a vicious migraine simultaneously, and he collapsed onto his hands and knees, panting.

"Are you alright?" Toriel gasped, reaching out to help steady him.

Mar wasn't paying attention though. He was too busy staring at the ground underneath him. Below him was a bed of golden flowers, the same shade as the color he had seen the last moment before hitting the ground. This phenomena drove the point home. Flowers didn't grow underground. Monster's didn't exist. And people didn't just survive with a few bruises from leaping off a cliff. Or at least, that's what he had thought.

Mar was silent for a moment with astonishment, Toriel watching worriedly. Then, suddenly, he threw his head back and laughed. Toriel's eyes widened in surprise but Mar didn't let up, gasping for breath and grimacing as his skull throbbed with every sound. Finally, when the pain in his head became too much to bare, Mar stopped, sucking in air like he had been drowning the moment before. He pushed himself up and met Toriel's gaze, his own eyes sparkling. "This is wonderful!" Mar grinned.

A new world, far away from the lonely one he had left above. A world of myths and fairytales. But even more importantly, a world that Dane might be in.

Toriel smiled back at him, looking relieved, but before she could say anything Mar spoke up again, unable to keep his hopes concealed for another second. "You mentioned other children," Mar said eagerly. "Is there a boy named Dane here?" Toriel's eyes lit up in recognition and Mar almost collapsed again at the overwhelming happiness blossoming inside his chest. He felt tears begin to roll down his cheeks.

"Mar?" Toriel asked, alarmed. "What's wrong? Are you badly hurt?"

"No," Mar laughed, ignoring his vengeful migraine and aching back. "No, I'm fine. Where is Dane?"

At this Toriel's eyes suddenly grew dark and Mar froze in horror, unable to breath. He couldn't stand the thought of having his friend ripped from his grasp once more now that Mar had found hope of actually seeing him again.

Toriel noticed the fear in his eyes and quickly spoke up. "Don't worry," she smiled, patting his shoulder to comfort him. "Your friend was here only a few days ago and he was safe."

Mar was overtaken by a flood of relief, but a moment later doubt found its way in once more. "Was safe?" Mar repeated fearfully. "Where is he now?"

Toriel averted her eyes, trying unsuccessfully to hide the sadness that resided there. "I tried to convince him to stay with me, so that I could take care of him." She sounded like a mother who had lost her child. "But your friend is a young man of action." Toriel smiled remorsefully. "He never would have been happy stuck in the ruins with me. So I had to let him go."

"Let him go?" Mar asked, eager to know where Dane had gone to.

"It's dangerous outside the ruins for humans," Toriel said sadly. "I tried to warn him, but like I said, he couldn't have been happy here anyway. So I showed him the door to the rest of the underground and said goodbye. I baked him a pie before he left." She smiled at the memory.

"I need to follow him," Mar lept to his feet. The sudden action only encouraged his migraine and he clutched at his skull, wincing.

"Please don't!" Toriel pleaded. "You'll be safe in here, and I'll look after you! I can-"

She trailed off as she saw the desperate look on Mar's face. Her own face drooped as if her heart was breaking, but she put on a brave smile and spoke up a moment later. "No," she sighed. "I'm sorry. Of course you're worried about your friend." Toriel got to her feet and extended a hand to Mar. He took it, pleased by how soft her fur was. "I'll show you where the door is," Toriel sighed sadly. "Just allow me to pack you a lunch before you leave. I won't have time to bake a pie, but I should be able to put something together."

"Thank you, ma'am," Mar smiled gratefully up at her, allowing Toriel to lead him through the ruins. Toriel didn't answer, lost in thought.

The rest of the journey passed in silence. Finally they arrived at a small, cozy looking house. Toriel brought him inside to a living room and had him sit in a large padded armchair by the fireplace. "I'll only be moment," she said, passing through a doorway. Mar could hear her in the other room rummaging around. He leaned his sore back against the armchair and let out a content sigh. It wasn't until now that he'd realized how tired he was, and the heat from the fire felt nice on his skin. A small pang of regret passed through him that he couldn't stay here with Toriel. This place felt more like a home than any other he'd ever been. But still, staying was not an option. He had to find Dane, and if it was as dangerous in the underground as Toriel said it was, he had to do so quickly.

"Here," Toriel reappeared, holding out a paper sack. A delicious aroma was wafting from it. "Perhaps you should stay just for tonight," she made one last effort, a hopeful look in her eyes. "That way you'll be well rested, and you can set out first thing tomorrow morning. I'll bake you a nice pie."

Mar smiled up at her. "Thank you so much, but I can't rest until I know Dane is safe."

"Of course," Toriel's face fell. "I'm sorry. I'll show you the way." She took Mar's hand once more and led him out into the entry hall and down a flight of stairs. They passed through a long corridor and around a corner until finally they reached a door. "This is it." Toriel sounded remorseful. "Please do be careful, Mar." She reached down and gave him a warm hug before turning to go. She had only taken a few steps before turning back. "When you find Dane, if you'd like, then you both are more than welcome to come back and stay with me." Toriel smiled one last time, then, without waiting for an answer, hurried off.

Mar watched her go before facing the door. He paused a moment, sucking in a deep breath, then slowly pushed it open.


	2. Manners

Mar was greeted by a cold wind. For a moment he thought he was staring into a blinding light, but then he realized that the endless white expanse all around him was really snow. Flakes fluttered down on him, decorating his hair and eyelashes. He drew his arms tightly around himself, wishing he had brought a coat up on the mountain that morning. The mountain-

That hopeless time climbing the gray peaks to his death now seemed a world away. It was as if Mar had been a stranger passing by, simply witnessing that unknown boy trying to end his life rather than being the one who had actually done it himself. He grinned into the ceaseless white. He was going to see Dane again.

Mar was roused out of his thoughts by the sound of the heavy door swinging shut behind him. It rang out with a sound of finality over the quiet snow drifts, leaving a slightly uneasy feeling in its wake. Without further delay Mar started running, laughing as he saw his feet kicking up the glittering snow. Trees began to close in around him and soon he found himself in a thick forest. He slowed to a walk as he came to a bridge, grinning while he caught his breath.

This moment of peace didn't last for long, though. The further in he walked the darker it became. Mar began to think he saw shadows moving at the edge of his vision. He remembered Toriel's warnings of danger, and a shiver that wasn't from the cold began to creep down his spine. Suddenly he saw something up ahead. Mar froze, ready to dash into the trees at the first sign of danger. The looming shadow didn't move an inch, and neither did he.

A long while passed like this, Mar's heart racing the whole time. Finally, when it seemed as if the distant shape wouldn't make a move until he did, Mar took a hasty, hesitant step forward. Still, the shape didn't move. Stealing his breath, he ran at it full force, expecting to have to turn and escape at any moment. Instead, as he grew near, the shadows cleared up and he was able to make out what it actually was. Mar laughed at his earlier fear, stopping right next to the thing.

It was simply a small, hut-like structure, not even entirely built yet. The roof was only half complete and the back wall hadn't even been started. Mar smiled in relief, turning to continue up the path. The smile faded from his eyes at what he saw next. A pair of bright red boots stood directly in front of him. Trembling in fear, Mar slowly looked up. The boots were connected to thin, bone legs. A bare spinal cord could be seen just below the thing's shirt, and at the top, crowning this nightmare, was a grinning skull.

Mar watched in horror as the monster parted its jaws, certain it was preparing to sink its teeth into him. "H-" the thing started to say, but it didn't get anything else out before Mar found his voice once more.

Terrified, Mar let out a shrill scream, slicing through the air like a knife. The beast jumped at this sudden sound, eye sockets widening and the word it had been trying to say turning into a similar shriek. For what felt like eternity the two of them just stood there, eyes wide and screaming incoherently at one another. Eventually some sense found its way into Mar's mind in the form of a single word: run.

Without waiting another second Mar took off, feet flying across the snow. He was so afraid that he didn't even think to head into the forest and try to hide among the trees, instead bolting down the path as fast as his legs would allow. He heard the thing yelling something at him from behind but he had no interest in finding out what it was.

Mar was just rounding a bend when he ran straight into something solid. He fell backwards, landing heavily on the cold ground. The pain from his fall into the flower bed came jolting back and he let out a groan, momentarily forgetting the danger. Mar looked up to see what he had collided with. Blocking his path were two large, dog-like creatures. They stood erect like humans, and had white fur the same color as the snow. Both wore thick black robes with the hoods pulled over their heads. Mar noticed that one of them had a thin handlebar mustache, which would have been more amusing if it weren't for the fact that the two monsters were carrying long-handled axes that shone menacingly in the light.

Mar uttered a frightened cry, attempting to scramble quickly to his feet but instead slipping and falling down in the snow. Before he could make another attempt, the dog-creature with the long eyelashes hastily sniffed the air and placed a foot on top of Mar to hold him down. The creature didn't do so very roughly, but still Mar winced as he felt the paw press against his bruises.

"(What is this?)" the monster barked out. She sniffed again, looking puzzled. "(Could this be a human?)"

Mar whimpered helplessly, unable to escape from under the heavy paw.

"Did you hear that?" the dog with the mustache commented. "That sounded like a lost puppy!"

"(A puppy?)" the first dog repeated. "(But it doesn't smell like a puppy.)"

Mar stared up at them in bewilderment. Upon closer inspection he noticed that neither of the dogs were looking directly at him. Their eyes seemed rather unfocused as they inhaled big puffs of the cold air.

Mustache dog took another whiff. "You're right. Certainly not any puppy I've ever smelled."

Just then Mar heard the sound of hurried footsteps behind him. The dogs must have heard it too for they paused, pointing their noses upwards. Mar turned his head away from the two to look behind him. There was the skeleton, gasping for breath. A feeling of dread settled deep in the pit of the boy's stomach. He was trapped.

"Papyrus!" mustache dog spoke up. "Does this look like a human to you?"

The skeleton froze for a moment, scrutinizing the boy. Mar's heart stopped as those empty eyes swept over him. Finally, the monster straightened up, ready to give his final judgement with a grim and serious look. "What does a human look like?" he asked.

"(What does a human smell like?)" the dog pinning Mar down added. All three monsters stood there for a moment, puzzled at what to do.

Mar looked from one to the next, thinking quickly. Finally he opened his mouth and let out a nervous bark.

"Puppy!" all three cried so loud that it was almost comical. The dog with eyelashes instantly removed her foot and stepped back. The skeleton offered his hand and, filled with a mixture of confusion and relief, Mar took it.

As soon as he had been pulled to his feet the dog with eyelashes blurted out an apology. "(We're so sorry! We've just never smelled a puppy like you before!)"

"We're members of the newly established Snowdin watch, you see," the second dog added, puffing out his chest proudly. "It's our job to be careful. Some humans have passed through the forest recently and we need to make sure no more-"

"I am so sorry for my rudeness!" the skeleton interrupted, overly excited. "I am the great Papyrus! I never once doubted you, puppy! Though I must say, you are a strange looking puppy."

"Yes, I am a puppy," Mar said feebly, not having ever been a very good liar.

"Indeed you are!" Papyrus shouted. Mar got the sense that the skeleton wasn't aware of how loud he was being. "I was trying to be the first to welcome you to Snowdin when this unfortunate mistake happened. I could tell you were new right away! Only a newbie would run from the great Papyrus! I understand that my strength and charms can be rather intimidating at times, but fear not, puppy! I am a simple skeleton at heart."

"We don't get many newcomers," mustache dog took this chance to intervene.

"(That's why finding you here was so suspicious,)" eyelashes dog added. "(It's our duty to protect the people of Snowdin, and the whole underground!)"

"Did you come from the capital?" mustache dog asked.

All three looked at him expectantly, waiting for an answer. Mar had no idea what they were talking about and weighed his options on how to answer. Afraid that if he said yes they might ask him further questions that would reveal he didn't actually know what the capital was, Mar decided to tell the truth. Remembering Toriel mention the name of the place he had fallen into, he told them, "I came from the ruins."

"The ruins?" all three exclaimed at the same time. Mar froze up, terrified that he made some sort of mistake. A moment later relief flooded him as none of the monsters expressed doubt at his claim.

"Does that mean you were left behind when the rest of monsterkind left to explore the underground?" Mustache dog sounded concerned.

"(You poor thing!)" eyelashes dog said, not giving Mar the chance to answer. "(Were you alone there all this time?)"

Deciding not to push his luck any further, Mar nodded meekly.

"You have been quite lucky in bumping into me, then!" Papyrus spoke up. "I shall lead you safely to Snowdin myself!"

"(We'll come too,)" eyelash dog told them. "(We must keep all citizens of the underground safe.)"

Mar allowed the two dogs to lead the way, Papyrus walking alongside him.

"My name is Dogamy," mustache dog said. "And this is my wife, Dogaressa."

"(I'm sorry again for our misunderstanding!)"

Papyrus cut in before Mar could reassure her. "I've been saying that this watch thing is a bit much! I personally haven't seen a single human. All that has been accomplished so far is scaring an innocent puppy!"

"We have to be careful, Papyrus," Dogamy replied patiently. "It wasn't that long ago that the first human came here. She passed right through Snowdin undetected. Any one of us could've become her victim!"

"I still think a nice No Humans Allowed sign would do the trick," Papyrus said. The group passed by an empty hut-like structure similar to the one before, only this one was finished. "And no one's even at the sentry post!" Papyrus sounded as if he thought of this as a capital crime. "If I were in charge I'd be the greatest watch leader ever! No one would think to abandon their post!"

"(I thought you just said you didn't like the watch,)" Dogaressa laughed.

Dogamy spoke up as well. "And anyway, that's Doggo's post. He's still in the capital getting his reward."

The conversation continued like this as the path wound along cliffs and through patches of ice. Mar listened quietly as Papyrus boasted and the two dogs patiently responded. Finally they reached a long bridge stretching across a wide drop off into the forest far below.

"(This is as far as we can take you,)" Dogaressa informed Mar.

"We still have a lot of area to patrol today," Dogamy explained.

"(Goodbye puppy! Take good care of him, Papyrus!)"

"Sorry again for our mistake!"

With that the two turned and marched off, holding paws.

"I've heard the phrase love birds," Papyrus said to himself more than anyone else, "but I think love dogs would be more appropriate." He turned back to Mar, gesturing dramatically towards the bridge. "Onward, puppy! Snowdin is not far now!"

It turned out that he was right. Snowdin was, in fact, just on the other side of that bridge. Mar could make out the large sign saying WELCOME TO SNOWDIN. Christmas lights hung from the edges, matching up well with its frosty white surroundings. Beyond it was a pair of cheerful log cabin-type buildings connected to one another. As the passed them Mar noticed that one was labeled simply SHOP and the other INN. Just beyond it was a small igloo and further down Mar could see a cheerful looking Christmas tree and a large brick building with a delicious aroma wafting from it. His stomach growled and his mind returned to the lunch Toriel had packed him, still clutched in his hand.

"Follow me, puppy!" Papyrus said eagerly. "I know a shortcut!" Without delay the skeleton dove head first into the igloo. Mar watched in astonishment as he disappeared completely. The little ice structure had looked far too small to fit the entirety of the tall, lanky skeleton. Mar took a cautious step into the igloo and was further surprised to find there wasn't any ground beneath his feet. He fell forward, suddenly reminded of his suffocating experience earlier that day. He was only airborne for a moment, however, before long bone arms reached out and caught him. "My apologies, puppy," Papyrus' familiar voice rang out. "I forgot to warn you of the drop."

Mar offered no answer, too perplexed by the realization that somewhere below him the floor had begun to move rapidly. They sped along a tunnel until Mar could see a light above them. Here the floor stopped and Papyrus climbed out of the passage, carrying Mar with him. Mar saw that they had come from an igloo identical to the last, though their surroundings had changed entirely. This igloo was nestled between a cozy log cabin and a similarly constructed shed. The cabin looked like it had come straight from a Christmas card, decked out in lights with a holly wreath hanging on the door and, of course, a fresh dusting of snow on the roof.

"Welcome to my house!" Papyrus announced, carrying Mar through the front door into a brightly lit living room. "You can stay here with me! My brother won't be back for a while, but I'm sure he'd love to meet you! I can't promise that he'll be back by tonight, though. He always takes these long naps at night time. So lazy!" Without waiting for any answer, Papyrus bustled into the kitchen, Mar in tow. "You must be hungry! I think I have some dog kibble left over from when Lesser Dog got lost in our living room!"

"Thank you, but I have some food here," Mar managed to get out before Papyrus could say anything else, holding up his paper sack. "And, uh, Papyrus?" The skeleton looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to speak. "You can put me down now."

Papyrus glanced down, surprised that he was still holding the boy in his arms. "Of course!" the skeleton exclaimed. "I'm sorry, puppy! Sometimes my excitement can mask my manners, but it is a flaw very few see. I can assure you that normally I would not let my charms get the better of me!"

Mar couldn't help but laugh a little at Papyrus' response. "Would you like some of my food?" he offered, pulling open the bag.

"I see your game!" Papyrus looked dead serious as he considered Mar's offer. "You think you can out manner me! Most people would think that it is polite to say no, but I am smarter than that! I see through your tricks, clever though they are. I am aware that it would actually be rude to refuse, and so I accept your kind offer with equal kindness!"

Mar laughed as he emptied the contents of the bag onto the counter. Three muffins tumbled out, alongside an orange and some thinly sliced celery. "Here," Mar gave Papyrus a whole muffin and half of the third one. He split the orange evenly, and pushed all the celery towards the skeleton. "Do you like vegetables?"

"Of course I do! They're good for your bones-" here he trailed off, a look of horror coming over his face. "I mean that literally!" Papyrus exclaimed as if he had made some grave mistake. "They really are good for your bones! I was not making a pun there so don't take it as such!"

"Alright," Mar grinned at his weird behavior. "You can have all the celery then. I don't like vegetables myself."

"Aha!" Papyrus shouted. "Trying to best me again at the manners game? Sly move, puppy, but such a thing could not go unnoticed by Papyrus! I must insist that you take all the vegetables!"

"But I don't like vegetables," Mar reminded him.

"But they're good for your bones-" Here Papyrus paused, pondering something for a moment. He turned to Mar, looking puzzled. "Do puppies have bones?"

"No," Mar told him. It wasn't completely a lie. It was true that human dogs had bones, but down here everyone was a monster. Perhaps monster dogs didn't have any bones in them. Besides, it was a good excuse to convince Papyrus to eat the vegetables.

"Alright then," Papyrus sounded satisfied, munching down on the celery.

They both ate ravenously. Toriel's muffins were absolutely delicious, though a bit frozen from the long walk through the snow. Mar couldn't help but feel a wave of gratitude for all her kindness.

Once they had finished the meal Mar yawned, his sleepiness catching up with him once more. Papyrus noticed this and immediately seized upon the opportunity. "Tired, puppy? As a polite and excellent host, I must insist you get some rest. I am not an avid supporter of naps myself, but since I am the shining example of manners I shall not point this out!"

Mar thought worriedly of Dane. However, he really was exhausted. He would hardly be any closer to finding his friend if he passed out in the snow. Making up his mind, he nodded.

Papyrus' eye sockets widened as though he were impressed. "You are indeed good at this game," he began, "but the great Papyrus never backs down to a challenge. I believe you shall find that you have met your match! Follow me, puppy!"

The skeleton led him up a flight of stairs and through the first door. Inside was bedroom. There was an old computer, a bookshelf, a table of figures, and a pirate flag hanging on the wall. However, most impressive was the bright orange race car-shaped bed in the corner. It was neatly made and looked as though it had barely ever been slept in.

"Welcome to my dwellings!" Papyrus announced in his dramatic style. "That cool bed over there is my own, as is everything else in this room. That is why it is called my bedroom! You may nap in here! I hardly ever use that bed myself. Make sure to let me, your wonderful host, know if there is anything you need! I shall be downstairs watching the TV." And with a cackle as though he had just won a prize, Papyrus left.

Too tired to stay standing another second, Mar collapsed onto the bed. He burrowed under the covers without bothering to turn off the light and, in no time, he had fallen fast asleep.


	3. Welcome

"Rise and shine, sleepy pup!"

Mar rolled over, not ready to get up for school. His foster mother sounded awfully cheerful this morning. Usually she just smacked him over the head with a newspaper to wake him.

"It's that time of day when monsters eat! I don't usually cook, but since I am an impeccable host, I shall make something especially for you!"

She was offering to cook something for him? And what did she mean monsters?

Perplexed, Mar opened his eyes a little bit. Inches from his face was a grinning skull. He bolted up, shrieking in terror. The skull lept back, its own scream of surprise joining his.

This wasn't the basement! Where was he? What was that thing-

Just then all Mar's memories came flooding back. He slumped back down on the mattress, clutching his throbbing head.

Papyrus quieted as well, still looking slightly startled. "That is the second time you have surprised me, puppy! I can see that you are quite the master of pranks! But one competition at a time, my friend! We must first determine the champion of our battle of manners! And speaking of which, I have just offered to cook for you. What is your answer?"

Mar looked up at the skeleton. He wasn't sure what time it was, but hs stomach felt slightly hungry, so he nodded his head.

"Clever move!" Papyrus beamed. "But this battle is far from over! It's a good thing my brother isn't here or he'd steal you away to take you out to eat. That's what he did with the last strange monster that passed through here." Papyrus paused a moment, remembering something. "That monster looked a lot like you, actually," he added, "only he didn't say that he was a puppy!"

"A monster that looked like me!" Mar exclaimed, his attention suddenly captured. "Where is he?!"

Papyrus looked pleased at Mar's sudden interest. "Like I said, Sans took him out to eat. I think he must've shown him the way to Waterfall next because they haven't returned. Sadly, I don't think that monster will be coming back. He kept saying that he had to see the king. The old monarch is quite the fun fellow, but even so I'm not sure why your friend was so eager. I don't mean to be rude, but the guy wasn't the best at manners!" Papyrus clapped his hands to his face, suddenly looking mortified. "Oh no!" he gasped. "I've insulted your friend! I've lost some of my politeness points! But I shall not surrender! I apologize for my lack of grace, puppy! Be aware, I shall have made up for this loss in no time and be even with you in the races once more!"

With that Papyrus hurried from the room, set on cooking something for Mar. The boy wanted to call out after him and ask more about Dane, but he doubted the skeleton knew anymore than he had already said. Perhaps the strange monster he had described wasn't even Dane after all, but Mar had to hold on to hope. Plus, Papyrus mentioning that the strange monster had lacked manners did sound like Dane. And where was this Waterfall? The boy had just resolved to ask Papyrus as soon as he was finished cooking when the door swung open.

Expecting Papyrus, Mar jumped up, eager to know more. However, a different skeleton sauntered into the room. He was short and stocky, wearing a blue hoodie with a white turtleneck underneath and dark shorts. "Papyrus, I'm hom-" The skeleton broke off, eyes falling on Mar. Unlike Papyrus, this skeleton appeared to have pupils in the forms of little specks of light within his otherwise dark eye sockets. Perhaps his mind was playing tricks on him, but mar swore he saw the pupils disappear for a moment, leaving the eyes black and empty. A cold shiver snaked its way down the boy's spine as he stared into those gaping holes.

This only lasted for a moment, however, as Papyrus suddenly entered the room, grinning cheerfully. "Sans!" he cried. "I thought for sure you were taking one of your seven hour naps somewhere!" Papyrus was enthusiastically stirring a bowl of what appeared to be dog treats mixed with milk. Mar's stomach churned at the sight.

"I am pretty bone-tired," Sans grinned.

Papyrus groaned loudly. "Brother!" he scolded.

"What?" Sans shrugged. "Come on Papyrus, throw me a bone here!"

Even Mar felt like groaning at that one. However, there was something about the second skeleton's presence that made him feel uneasy, so he remained quiet.

"What're you making there?" Sans eyed the bowl.

"This strange puppy was lost out in the forest. He thinks he can out manner me but I'll show him! I'm making him my famous puppy chowder!"

"That looks delicious," Sans grinned, lying through his perfect teeth, "but we can't welcome a newcomer to town without celebrating at Grillby's."

"I knew you would try this, brother!" Papyrus scowled. "Here I am, making a nice home-cooked meal for my guest, and you want burgers!"

"I'll bring something home for you," Sans chuckled. He took Mar's hand and started leading him from the room.

"No ketchup!" Papyrus called after him, still frantically stirring the bowl despite the fact that it was no longer needed.

Mar was grateful that he had been rescued from Papyrus' puppy chowder, but he still couldn't shake the nervous feeling this new skeleton gave him. Sans grasped his hand firmly, almost too tightly, and pulled him quickly along behind him, not looking back. Mar swallowed, feeling that it would be unwise to try and resist.

Once they had left the house and were heading down the road, Sans spoke up. "What's your name?"

Mar paused for a moment, wondering if there was a wrong answer to this question. "Puppy?" he said uncertainly.

"I'm a skeleton, but my name isn't Skeleton. What's your _name_?" Sans repeated, still not looking back at the boy he was dragging behind him.

"Mar," Mar answered, getting more worried each second.

The skeleton didn't say anything after that, leading the boy down the road until they had reached the building Mar had noticed earlier with the delicious aroma wafting from it. Along the top gold letters spelled out GRILLBY'S. Sans went through the door, Mar pulled along behind.

The place inside was bustling. Monsters of all different kinds sat at the tables, booths, and counter. The pub had a cozy glow to it from the lamps hung on the dark red walls, and in the far right corner by the bar a jukebox played relaxing tunes.

"Evening Sans!" the bartender called out. "The usual?" He was a man that seemed to be made entirely out of flames. The only thing to indicate where his eyes were was a pair of oval spectacles on what Mar assumed was his head, floating right above a nicely ironed dress shirt.

"Two of them, please," Sans answered cheerfully. "I've got a newcomer here." The monsters in the joint had first turned to give Sans friendly smiles when he entered, but now their eyes fell on the boy with curiosity. Mar shrunk back a bit, not liking being the center of attention.

"That looks like the stranger you brought in yesterday," a bird-like creature seated at the counter called out.

"This one's a puppy," Sans told him.

"Strangest puppy I've ever seen," a razor-toothed plant commented from its booth.

"Don't be rude to the newbie or I'll have a bone to pick with you," Sans winked. The room erupted into hearty laughter at the corny joke. Sans sat down over at a small table in the corner, opposite the bar. Mar followed closely behind, relieved that the other monster seemed to have lost interest in him and resumed their earlier activities.

Sans' introduction had seemed friendly enough, but there still wasn't something quite right about the skeleton. Before Mar had the opportunity to think more on it, though, the flame monster came over, carrying two plates heaped with fries and large burgers. "I brought extra ketchup," he told Sans, setting at least half a dozen bottles down on the table.

"Thanks Grillby," Sans grinned, popping the cap off a bottle and downing it in one gulp as if he was drinking water. Before Grillby could leave, Sans spoke up once more. "Once we're finished here could you bring out one more order? I'm bringing Papyrus something to eat also."

"You got it," the flames nodded before heading back to the bar.

"Ketchup?" Sans asked the boy, holding out a bottle.

Mar noticed that the burgers had come with ketchup already on them so he shook his head.

"Suit yourself," Sans shrugged, removing the top bun from his burger and upending an entire bottle over the patty.

They both ate in silence for a while. Mar gnawed slowly at the food despite how good it tasted while Sans ravenously tore into his meal. Once the skeleton was about halfway finished, he finally spoke up.

"What brings you to Snowdin?" he said casually.

"I'm looking for a friend," Mar replied nervously.

"The one that passed through yesterday? What was his name... Dane?"

So it had been Dane! Mar nodded eagerly, unable to speak through his mouthful of burger.

"He's headed for the capital. I can show you the way to Waterfall if you'd like," Sans offered. "I led him there just a few hours ago."

Mar swallowed quickly before smiling and saying a genuine, "Thank you!"

Sans waved away his gratitude, taking a swig of ketchup. "If I show you though, you have to promise me one thing." He beckoned for Mar to come closer and the boy leaned in. "Don't ever come back."

Mar was startled by Sans' sudden change in voice. It had gone from carefree and friendly to cold and serious without a moment's notice. He looked up at the skeleton, just to feel a further stab of fear. This time Mar knew he wasn't imagining it. The light had gone out in Sans' eyes, leaving nothing but a unfeeling, infinite void gazing at him.

"Do we understand each other?" Sans was hardly any taller than Mar but he seemed to loom over him. He nodded weakly, having no desire to oppose this figment of nightmares. As soon as Sans saw the boy's agreement the light returned to his eyes and his typical friendly demeanor manifested itself once more. "Good," he smiled, biting into a frie. "Then let's hurry up so we can get you on your way."

Mar had lost his appetite after that so he simply stared down into his food, waiting for Sans to finish up. Once Grillby had noticed Sans was down to the last few fries, he brought a bag over with Papyrus' food in it. "Thanks Grill," Sans winked. "Put it on my tab." Grillby nodded as he walked off and Sans inspected the bag to make sure everything was there. "Oops," he said to himself. "I forgot to say Papyrus didn't want any ketchup on his. Oh well." The skeleton shrugged, picking up the bag and storing the remaining bottles of ketchup inside his jacket. "Keep up," he grinned at Mar, rising from his seat.

Sans led the boy back towards his house, only this time they passed it by, continuing down the road. Mar looked back at it longingly, missing the comfort and security of having Papyrus around. A river appeared alongside them through the trees. Mar noticed, with some curiosity, that there were large chunks of ice flowing downstream. He didn't have time to make out any other details, however, as a flurry of snow greeted them. It was so thick that Mar could barely make out the form of Sans in front of him. He did manage to keep up, however, afraid of what the skeleton would do to him if he got lost.

The swirl of flakes cleared up surprisingly quick, and Mar found that even the snow under their feet had vanished, replaced by dark bluish stone. The entrance to some sort of large tunnel appeared before them in the rock, and Sans led the child into the darkness. It hadn't been particularly bright outside, but here it was far gloomier. The only light came from the entrance behind them and a few small shards of glowing blue stones, lodged in the walls and on the floor. Several torrents of water cascaded down from the ceiling high above and Sans marched straight through them. Mar was hesitant at first, not wanting to get wet when he was still cold from the walk through the snow, but when it became evident there was no way around them, he plunged on through. Luckily for him, the water wasn't freezing, though it wasn't particularly warm either. He shook himself after clearing the last of the falls, pushing his drenched hair out of his face.

They had entered into a small chamber in the caverns. A large, pale blue flower shone against the wall, and Mar could hear the sound of water rushing beneath the stone under his feet. The room lacked one of its walls, instead dropping off into the darkness below. Mar gazed over the edge and, sure enough, saw a waterfall surging from under the floor, plummeting down into the endless void. A small wooden stall was built in the corner of the room, next to a doorway that must've lead to the rest of the caverns.

"Welcome to Waterfall," Sans grinned, strolling over to the stand and pulling out the ketchup bottles. He stored them away under the counter. "I'd offer you a hot dog if we hadn't just eaten. Besides, it isn't business hours." He turned back to Mar, giving him his full attention now. "I took the other human- I mean 'strange monster'-," Sans shot Mar a wink, though there was nothing friendly about it, "all the way to the giant boulder. But I've got to get back and give Papyrus his dinner. He's gonna be mad about the ketchup, but still, better to get it hot then not." The skeleton turned to go, heading back towards Snowdin. He paused for a moment before glancing back over his shoulder. His eyes were emptier than the abyss below. "Remember your promise." Mar could've sworn his smile stretched even wider than usual, but before he could see for certain the skeleton was gone, leaving him alone in the dark caverns.


	4. The Blook Cousins

Mar stared after the skeleton for a while. He almost wanted to run after him despite the monster's sinister demeanor. It was dark and cramped here. Mar felt the walls would close in on him at any moment, leaving him buried in the darkness forever. Still, he force himself to keep going, picturing smiling Dane's face in his mind.

Unsurprisingly, the rushing sound of water greeted him as he entered the next room. Ahead he could see a waterfall pouring down from above, flooding part of the passage before flowing over the edge and dropping into the depths. Chunks of ice fell with the waterfall, floating along the current before joining its eternal plunge. Some stairs led down below next to the second drop off. Curious, Mar descended them cautiously, wondering if this would take him across without a need to get wet. However, this hope was crushed when he saw that it simply led to a walkway along the waterfall, branching out before the two paths connected again.

Strangely, though, a large, pale blue flower seemed to be growing at the end of the walkway, just like the flower in the other room. His interest captured, Mar approached it, trying his best not to look down at the endless empty space beneath him. Once he had reached it, Mar held out his hand, lightly brushing the petals with his fingertips. Suddenly a voice rang out in the cavern. "Don't fall!" It cried out. The boy leapt back in surprise, ironically almost falling straight off the edge. He managed to regain his balance at the last second and slumped down onto the walkway, sides heaving as his heart pounded in his chest.

His eyes raced around frantically, trying to locate the source of the voice. However, it remained silent, and he appeared to be entirely alone. Mar's eyes fell on the flower. Intrigued, he reached his hand out to touch it once more. "Don't fall!" the voice yelled.

Mar studied the plant for a moment. He had seen talking dogs and skeletons already. There had even been some plant-like creature back in Grillby's. It wasn't that much of a stretch to assume that these flowers could talk, too. "Can you hear me?" Mar asked. There was no answer. Perplexed, Mar touched the flower. "Can you hear me?"

Once again the boy almost toppled over the edge. He hadn't expected the hear his own voice, so lifelike it almost felt as though another him was standing right there. Catching himself, he turned to the plant once more. "So you echo what I say?" Just to confirm this he touched it once more and, sure enough, his words were repeated back to him. Mar grinned. "Cool!"

"Cool!"

The next several minutes were spent wasting his time as he thought up as many strange things to say as he possibly could. Finally growing bored of this game, the boy was about to leave when he thought of a more practical use of the flower. Taking a breath, he spoke up. "Dane, if you come back this way, it's me, Mar. I'm looking for you right now, so if you hear this, please go back to the ruins where you fell. Toriel is really nice, and I'll come find you there." He listened once to the message just to make sure the flower had got it all before heading back up the stairs to the passage above.

Eyeing the falling ice, Mar steadied himself. He waited for a gap in the chunks before taking off. The boy made it safely across, having to duck to avoid the last piece of ice. He hurried forward, pushing through a patch of tall grass growing in the middle of the path.

Beyond this was another falls, its water flowing over the passage before cascading off the edge and out of sight. A sign hung on the wall, written in glowing letters that seemed to have been inscribed before the beginning of time itself. The letters spelled out: _When four bridge seeds align in the water, they will sprout._ Mar looked around, but he couldn't see any seeds lying about. Puzzled at the strange message, he decided his best option was to wade across the river like he had the last one. He cautiously dipped a toe into the stream. It was moving awfully fast, and in this one he couldn't see the bottom. Still, he had to get across somehow, so Mar began to carefully lower himself down.

The water had reached all the way up to his chest and still there was no sign of a bottom. Taking a deep breath, the boy plunged forward into the current. It wasn't that far across, but the rate at which the torrent of water was pushing him towards the final drop was terrifying. He swam with all his might, seeming to get nowhere. With a sickening jolt of dread, Mar felt his feet sweep over the edge into empty space. He wasn't going to make it. His vision went white and Mar flailed around in a panic. He felt himself falling, hands trying desperately to grab for something, anything. At the last possible moment they connected with the stone ground on the other side. He clung to it for dear life, his body hanging limply over the nothingness. Once he was finally able to calm down enough to take control, Mar pulled himself up to the safety of the other side.

He collapsed onto the ground in a drenched heap. Tears from the fear of the moment flowed down his cheeks, not serving to make him any drier. He sat up, wiping impatiently at his eyes. Once again Mar was reminded of when he had willingly stepped off the cliff that morning. He let out a half-hearted laugh. What a stupid thing for him to have done! After all he had been through, it wasn't hard for him to decide that he absolutely hated falling. Deciding to never do something so brainless again, Mar got to his feet, as determined as ever to find his friend.

The river in the next room stretched longer, though Mar was relieved to see a wooden bridge had been built over it. He was less so, however, when he reached the other side and discovered that he had to cross the river once more in order to get out of this room, and this time there was no bridge. Another sign hung on the far wall with some sort of golden bell next to it. Certain it would be some more nonsense about bridge seeds, he decided to read the sign anyways. _If an error is made, the Bell Blossom can call Bridge Seeds back to where they started._

Still skeptical, Mar reached out and rang the bell. To his surprise, four green seeds with pink buds suddenly appeared among the clusters of glowing mushrooms dotting the floor. He remembered the message in the last room and picked up the plants, studying the curving path of the water. It didn't take him long to figure it out, and once all four seeds had been put in their proper places, they bloomed before his eyes. Pink petals unfurled and spread out, forming just the bridge Mar needed to get to the opposite side. Relieved that he wouldn't have to swim again, Mar crossed quickly and hurried through the doorway.

The boy entered into a long hallway. The ceiling loomed high above, and for a moment he truly thought he was outside. Thousands of tiny stones glittered above him like stars in the night sky. He stared up at the spectacle for a while, admiring its beauty. It felt so peaceful here. He and Dane used to sneak out to go look at the stars together on clear nights. Thinking about it made Mar feel overwhelmingly alone. He shook himself, looking for something else to focus on before tears could well up in his eyes once more.

A sign across from him read: _the Wishing Room_. Carefully picking out the brightest stone that he could find above him, Mar shut his eyes for a moment and poured all his soul into wishing that he would see Dane again. This accomplished, Mar headed down the hall, this time not stopping to listen to each echo flower blooming from the stone.

Ahead of him the passage branched to the left, the main way dead ending in in front of him. A small telescope stood at the place where the hall split. Mar peered around the corner, only to find that here it dead ended too. He searched around for some way out, but this proved to be fruitless. He even peered through the telescope to see if there was any clue hidden there, but nothing but sparkling stones revealed themselves to him through the lense. Was this all just a lie? Had Sans led him to this place simply to waste his time? How was he ever going to catch up with Dane now?

His hopes rapidly slipping through his fingers, Mar lashed out in anger, striking the bare wall with his fist. A sharp pain greeted him and he pulled back instantly, cursing. He exclaimed in surprise, however, when a doorway in the wall suddenly opened up. Thrilled by his discovery, Mar dashed forward. He paused before his foot could cross the threshold, however, seeming to ponder something. Making up his mind, Mar returned to the telescope. The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out his favorite pen, holding the telescope steady as he wrote a message on the lens. Satisfied, Mar tucked his pen safely back into his pocket and hurried away.

"Hello!" an enthusiastic voice rang out. Mar jumped at the unexpected sound, whirling around. At first he thought he must have accidently brushed against an echo flower, put this new room was empty of all such blossoms.

"Who's there?" Mar called out hesitantly. The room appeared to be empty except for him. The only other sound was water lapping at the boardwalk he now stood on, and the rustling of cattails in the soft waves.

"Oh, do forgive me, darling," the voice laughed. It seemed to be coming out of thin air. "I sometimes forget when I'm invisible!" Just then a shape started to materialize in front of him. Mar watched, wide eyed, as a pink ghost appeared, smiling brightly at him. "You must be new around here. I know everyone who passes through this place." Its smile faded for a moment and a bitter look came into its eyes. "Nothing new really ever happens around here." However, the ghost composed itself instantly, the smile returning to its face as it looked back at Mar. "But of course! You must be wondering who I am. My name is-" again the ghost paused for a moment, a hint of distaste in its voice, "-Hapstablook."

"I'm Mar," the boy smiled shyly at this new monster.

"Mar!" Hapstablook exclaimed, the old flare returning to his voice. "What a lovely name! And may I just say how great it is to meet you, darling. My cousin was too busy back at the farm to come on a walk with me, so I'm glad to have found some company. Would you like to come over to my house? I'm sure Blooky would love to meet you as well!"

Mar nodded meekly.

"Oh, you two will get along famously!" Hapstablook called over his shoulder as he led the way down the boardwalk. "Blooky is rather shy himself. I keep telling him he needs to get out there more! Then again, there isn't much 'out there' to get around here," the ghost ended on a bitter note. He glanced back to make sure the boy was still following.

Mar had been doing his best to keep up while still trying to quickly read the ancient glyphs on the walls as they passed them. It seemed to be describing the war between monsters and humans.

"Ah, yes." Mar jumped a little as he found the ghost suddenly at his side. "History. A noble and _boring_ subject. Come now, don't tell me they didn't teach you this already at school, darling!"

"Um, yes!" Mar said quickly, still not any better at lying. "My monster history class! At monster school! Which I went to because I'm a monster!"

"Of course, darling!" Hapstablook beamed, seeming to mistake Mar's rambling for an attempt to copy the ghost's own dramatic manner. "You're not half bad! With a little practice you could be almost as charming as me! Come along now, Blooky is waiting!" Hapstablook sang out the last part, wiggling his nonexistent ghost hips as he strutted down the boardwalk on his equally nonexistent ghost legs. Casting a longing glance behind him at the fascinating words on the signs, Mar hurried along behind.

Up ahead the boardwalk dead ended abruptly before a large expanse of water. Hapstablook floated effortless over it, seeming to forget that not everyone could float.

"Um," Mar called out uncertainly, trying to get the ghost's attention. Hapstablook turned to see what the boy wanted.

"Oh!" He flashed a dazzling smile. "I'm sorry, darling! I forgot about the inconveniences that people with feet have!" Despite his words, Hapstablook glanced wistfully at Mar's feet, as though he were jealous. "There's a raft there, darling. It'll take you across."

Mar glanced down, noticing a square made of wooden boards. It was so small he had missed it. The structure didn't look particularly safe, but Hapstablook had already turned and was hip-swaying his way over to the other side. Not wanting to be left behind, Mar stepped uncertainly onto the boards. Instantly the raft jolted forward of its own accord, and Mar had to throw his arms out to keep his balance. The little craft sped swiftly across the water, delivering him safely to the boardwalk on the other side.

Mar sprinted to catch up to Hapstablook, who had already entered a stone passage and was floating straight through a large clump of grass without disturbing a single blade. It took a little more effort for Mar to make his way through, but once he had cleared the grass he caught up to the ghost on the other side.

Hapstablook was in the middle of saying something, not seeming to realize that the boy had only just now caught up to him. "-and that's pretty much my whole life. Snails and more snails. And Blooky of course! I'm not sure what I would do without dear Blooky in this dreary place. Probably go mad! Though I must be honest, he isn't much of a conversation starter."

They passed by some marsh land, the water glowing among the cattails and lily pads. Bubbles rose up from the ripples, floating towards the distant ceiling. "It's just across here!" Hapstablook called out cheerfully. "Oh, you'll love my house, darling! I designed it myself!"

Here the path was interrupted by a stream of water. On the opposite bank a large, bright yellow bird stood, as though waiting for something. It looked every bit like the rubber duck that small children played with in the bath tub. "Birdy!" Hapstablook called to it. "Would you mind carrying my friend over here? It seems he has been plagued with legs instead of a ghost body or lovely wings such as yours."

The bird looked very excited at the prospect of carrying Mar. It quickly flew over and used its legs to grab onto the collar of the boys shirt. With a great deal of effort, the bird lifted Mar from the ground and laboriously flew him across, Hapstablook saying words of praise and encouragement the whole way. Once ground was beneath them again the bird set Mar down gently, flapping over near the water once more before landing. It was out of breath and its little feathered chest heaved up and down, but it still seemed exceptionally pleased with itself. Mar thanked it before running after Hapstablook, who was already wiggling his hips down the path.

They seemed to be in the center of a sort of town square or neighborhood gathering spot. Three paths branched to the left, a narrower one passed a pool of water on the right, and the main road stretched before them. Hapstablook guided Mar up the middle left path. Two houses emerged, each roughly resembling the shape of a ghost. The houses seemed to mirror each other perfectly, except that the one on the right was a flashy red while the one on the left was more of a dull bluish-gray. It wasn't hard to guess which one was Hapstablook's.

"Let's see if Blooky's home!" Hapstablook cried out. He passed effortlessly through the solid door on the blue house only to return moments later. "He must be down at the snail farm," Hapstablook informed Mar. "But no matter! We shall visit him later! First I must show you my home, darling!"

This time Hapstablook passed through the door of his own house. Mar heard the click of a lock on the other side and the door swung open. Inside was a single room with bright pink, star patterned wallpaper. There was a pink bed in the corner, decorated with a purple pillow containing yet another star symbol. A poster of a dancing couple hung on the wall between the bed and a curtained window. A purple end table occupied the other corner of the room. Atop the table, a pink TV was blaring some human game show. On the floor was a sparkly pink ug, patterned with yet more stars to match the rest of the room's theme. The final object of interest was three red books scattered around the floor. Hapstablook floated over these, turning to look at Mars.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" He beamed. "Did I say I designed it myself?" Without waiting for an answer he gestured towards the bed. "Please, have a seat." Mar sat down and the ghost sat across from him. He was eyeing the boy with curiosity now. "So, do tell me. Where did you come here from?"

"The ruins," Mar answered truthfully.

"The ruins!" Hapstablook exclaimed. "Sounds so exotic! What was it like in this place?"

Mar got the feeling that Hapstablook must not have payed much attention in monster history class. "Very purple," he said shyly, speaking the first thing that came to his mind.

"Purple!" Hapstablook repeated the word over enthusiastically. "I do love that color! It's second only to pink in my book."

"There was, um, a patch of yellow flowers," Mar continued, eager to please.

"Oh, we have one of those here down in the garbage dump," Hapstablook told him. "Pretty things, but quite invasive. I hear they came here from the human world. Still, the king seems to be fond of them so-"

"The king?!" Mar exclaimed, suddenly remembering that Sans had told him Dane was heading to see the king. "Where is he?"

"Slow down, darling!" Hapstablook flashed one of his brilliant smiles. "I myself am no stranger to the lust a celebrity can bestow in someone, but we must compose ourselves."

"Where is the king?" Mar demanded, his interest piqued,

Hapstablook let out a good natured sigh. "He's far from here, I'm afraid, darling. His castle is in the capitol. Why, that frozen place is closer than the city! What was its name? Snowball-?"

"Snowdin?" Mar offered.

"No, that wasn't it," Hapstablook frowned in concentration. "Snowflake? Snowman?"

"Hapstablook," Mar interrupted his mumbling. "Which way is the capitol?"

"I've never been there myself," Hapstablook told him, "but I hear if you follow the main road out of here, you'll get there eventually. Snowstorm-?"

"Thank you!" Mar grinned, jumping to his feet and heading towards the door. Just before he could reach it, however, the pink ghost appeared in front of him. Forgetting that Hapstablook wasn't solid, Mar stopped abruptly to avoid collision.

"Where are you going, darling?" he asked. "My favorite show is just about to come on. Don't you want to watch?"

"I'm sorry, but I must get to the capitol,"Mar explained, trying to step around the ghost. Hapstablook simply floated back in front of him.

"Why such a rush, darling," he asked, still curious.

"I'm, uh-," Mar tried to come up with an excuse. As usual, the best he could manage was a slightly altered version of the truth. "I'm meeting a friend there, and I don't want to be late!"

"Well you should have just said so!" Hapstablook exclaimed. "I've always wanted to see the capitol! I can take you there!"

Mar didn't know exactly how Hapstablook was supposed to take him there when the ghost had never been there himself. Still, he didn't mind Hapstablook tagging along. "Okay," he nodded, finally managing to duck around the specter and get out the door.

Hapstablook hurried after him, taking the lead. "It's just this way, darling!" Hapstablook directed, even though Mar was already heading that way.

Just then Mar bumped into someone. Or rather, he passed through someone. A cold chill hit him and he jumped back in surprise.

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," a quiet voice stammered. "I didn't mean to, I-"

"Blooky!" Hapstablook cried out, sounding pleased. "I wanted us to all spend some time together! This is my new friend, Mar."

"Oh, uh, h-hi," Blooky said to Mar, not meeting his eyes.

Before Mar could greet him back, Hapstablook spoke up again.

"We're going to the capitol, Blooky! The capitol! It's all very urgent though. We have to hurry! Do you want to come along?"

"No, uh, thank you, I-I, um-"

"Come on, Blooky!" Hapstablook encouraged him. "It'll be fun! We can finally have a little adventure outside of this dull place."

"I, um, I think this place is fine," Blooky whispered. "And I-I can't come. I need to s-stay with the farm and-"

"Suit yourself," Hapstablook shrugged, spinning on his nonexistent heel with a flourish. "Don't wait up for me, Blooky," he cried cheerfully. "I won't be back until I've seen the capitol!" And with that he was off, strutting like a model on the runway.

Mar hurried after him to keep up. Behind him he heard Blooky call out desperately.

"Hapstablook!"

Mar turned to look at him, but the ghost had been too quiet for his cousin to hear, who continued shaking his hips down the road. Blooky stared after him, looking defeated. Mar gave the shy ghost one last glance before following Hapstablook down the path.


	5. Spider Bites

Hapstablook talked throughout the rest of their journey in waterfall. He went on and on about human TV shows and how much he admired the actresses and actors. He complained about how boring he found life on the snail farm. He reminisced fondly of his childhood with Blooky and their other cousin, saying this other cousin left to realize his dream of becoming a training dummy. Hapstablook even spoke of his own hopes and dreams; of traveling to new places, seeing new sights, and being admired and adored just like the stars he saw on TV.

Mar remained mostly silent during all this. Some of the time he listened, but other times he couldn't keep his mind from wandering to thoughts of Dane. The monsters here were undoubtedly hostile to humans. Dane was a much better liar than Mar, but he also had a hot temper. Would he be able to get by undetected in this place? Mar cringed as he pictured what fates would befall his friend if he were found out.

"Um, Mar?" a voice called from behind him.

Mar jumped a little, startled by the sudden interruption of his thoughts. The boy had been so absorbed in his own mind that he hadn't noticed Hapstablook had stopped moving. The ghost was floating a little ways back, looking out uncertainly from the exit of the last tunnel. Behind him Mar could see a giant sign flashing _WELCOME TO HOTLAND!_ in bright red lights. He looked around them, a bit surprised by the change of scenery. A sea of fiery lava swirled below them, bordering either side of the elevated path. Rising from the lava was a sheer black cliff, seeming to continue upwards forever. Before them was a long bridge with a few boards stacked next to it as though something else was going to be built there. Mar glanced back at Hapstablook, who was still hovering just inside the tunnel.

"I'm sorry," the ghost said, the usual flare gone from his voice. "It's just, I've never been outside of Waterfall before. I know it's silly, but I'm a little scared."

Mar walked over to him, not quite sure of what to say. They both remained silent for a moment, standing face to face. Finally, Mar spoke quietly. "I'm scared too."

Hapstablook looked into his eyes for a moment. Then he looked down at the line between Waterfall and Hotland. There was a small pair of faded sneakers on the other side, attached to a pair of legs with skinned knees, and all this attached to a little monster who wanted, not to see the capitol, but to see his friend. Hapstablook took a deep breath, then floated over the line.

Instantly his dazzling smile returned to his face. "Well, what are you waiting for, darling?" he exclaimed, waggling his ghostly hips down the path. "The capitol won't come to us!"

Mar smiled and fell in behind him. Up ahead the road branched out three ways. To the right a staircase descended eerily into the shadows, on the left the path seemed to lead further into Hotland, and before them stood a large, imposing building. A metal door marked its entrance and above it, painted in bright red letters, was the title _LAB_. Mar had just decided that the intimidating structure was something to be avoided when a bang suddenly came from its inner depths. Thick black smoke started to pour from the crack between the door. Mar took a hasty step towards the left path but was interrupted when the door suddenly slid open. A short, lizard-like creature in a stained lab coat came stumbling out, coughing. Her glasses were blackened from the smoke so she took them off, cleaning them on her coat.

Mar frantically tried to get Hapstablook's attention, wanting to leave before any mad scientists got their hands on them. The boy had read science fiction books, along with many other varieties, and if he'd learned anything, it was not to interfere with mad scientists. The ghost, however, wasn't paying him any attention. He was staring at the new monster as though fascinated.

The scientist, having finished wiping her lenses, replaced them on her face. She squinted for a moment, seeming confused, then suddenly jumped, startled at the discovery that she wasn't alone. "Oh," she began, a little awkwardly. "Um, h-hi! You don't, uh... look like the royal guard!"

Mar reflexively looked down at himself, as though he had to clarify that he was not, in fact, the royal guard.

"They, uh, must be hiring younger," the lizard-monster said, studying Mar as well.

For a moment there was an awkward silence as the three stared uncertainly at each other. It didn't last for long, though.

"Hello there, darling!" Hapstablook strode forward with an extra dramatic swish of the hips.

"D-darling?" the monster repeated, blushing a little.

However, the ghost continued right over her words. "My name is Hapstablook! And this gentleman is Mar. I do say, darling, you wouldn't happen to be the king's new royal scientist, would you?"

"Um, y-yeah," the monster smiled, blushing even deeper at having been recognized. "Yes, t-that's me! My name's A-Alphys."

"I thought so, dear. Why, just last week Undyne said the king was appointing a new scientist!"

"Oh, yes, Undyne!" Alphys smiled enthusiastically. "I've heard so much about her! Asgore, I m-mean, um, the king, hand selected her as the leader of the royal guard for her skill and strength! I-I hope I can, um, meet her soon!"

"Darling!" Hapstablook exclaimed with more flourish than was entirely necessary. "She lives right next door to me in Waterfall! You're welcome to come over anytime, my dear, and we can visit her together!"

"Oh, uh, y-yeah!" Alphys said excitedly, though she looked a little nervous about Hapstablook's forwardness. There was a pause as she shuffled her feet, looking like a butterfly under a magnifying class.

"Would you like some help?" Hapstablook asked, indicating the smoking lab behind her..

"Oh, I, uh…" Alphys shifted about nervously. "N-no thank you, it's a mess right now. I-I couldn't have guests in."

Mar stepped forward, a little uncertainly. "What were you making," he asked, curiosity overcoming caution.

Alphys looked pleased at his interest. "Just a, um, a box. Well, I mean," she blushed deeply, looking embarrassed at having said something so strange,"it's, uh, it's actually a bed. For me. It j-just f-folds up into an extremely, uh, easy-to-draw-box when not in use."

Mar had no idea why the ease with which the invention could be drawn mattered.

"It's just, um, g-giving me some trouble. But I-I'll get it right eventually!"

Another pause.

"So, um," Alphys spoke up once more, "Are you not the royal guard?"

Hapstablook laughed cheerfully. "No, darling! This body was not made for a life of combat."

"We're just passing through," Mar added hastily, taking a step back towards the path. Alphys seemed very nice and not like a scary mad scientist at all, but that didn't change the fact that Mar wanted to find Dane as soon as possible.

"O-oh," Alphys stuttered. "I've never seen anyone passing through here except for, um, the r-royal guards that patrol this area. T-then again, I am new here." She laughed nervously.

"We're on our way to see the capitol!" Hapstablook returned her smile. "Would you like to come along, darling?"

"W-well, I, um," once again Alphys blushed when the ghost called her darling. "I-I need to do some, uh, w-work at the core and that's on the way there!"

"Excellent!" Hapstablook cried. "It's settled then!"

Mar was relieved that they were at least moving forward. He hurried down the left path ahead of the other too, Hapstablook asking about Alphys' career with interest as the scientist gave him nervous but excited replies. The path ended before an elevator labeled _L1_ and the three of them got in.

"I k-know a quick way if you're heading to the capitol!" Alphys said eagerly, hitting the _left floor 3_ button. "F-follow me!" The elevator took them up to a reddish purple walkway. A metal bridge connected the two sides of the path where a large gap had cut into them. Around the gap Mar could see strange metal platforms with steam coming out of them. "I-It's a puzzle," Alphys said when she noticed Mar staring. "When it's done being, um, built, it'll h-help k-keep the humans out. I designed it myself!" She smiled proudly.

"You did, darling?" Hapstablook exclaimed. "It looks marvelous! You must be quite handy with metal."

"Y-yeah!" Alphys smiled, pleased with the compliment. "I-I am!"

Alphys guided them through a series of conveyor belts and paths until they reached a large, official-looking door with flashing green lights. It opened automatically before them. Mar ran ahead, growing ever more impatient to see Dane. He dashed through a doorway into a long hall, leaving the other two behind as they chatted. The boy would've ran the whole length of the hallway before stopping to wait for them, but his foot became entangled in something and he fell face first onto the , Mar rubbed his sore forehead as he sat up.

Just then a high-pitched laugh rang out through the hall. Mar froze, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. He looked around hurriedly. The hall dropped off on either side of the pathway into darkness. In the little light that was available, Mar could see the glint of thousands of cobwebs. In fact, the thing he had caught his foot in was a web, and he clawed at it frantically, trying to free himself.

"It's pointless, deary," that same voice rang from the shadows. "No one can escape once they've been ensnared in my web."

"Tell me," the voice suddenly switched sides, seeming to come from behind him now. Mar whipped his head around, but only darkness greeted him. "Do you like spiders?"

This question was accompanied by soft laughter echoing from hundreds of different voices. Heart racing in his chest, Mar slowly turned his head forward once more. He screamed as he saw a nightmarish face looming inches from his. Five pure black eyes stared gleefully at him and a mouth adorned with two needle-thin fangs curved up in a cruel smile. Three pairs of arms reached towards the boy with longing. Mar tried to get away but the web ensnaring his foot prevented him from going very far.

"What luck this is!" the horrendous creature exclaimed. "We were just about to have tea time, weren't we lovelies?"

Mar shrank back in horror as countless spiders crawled into view along the layers of webs, each murmuring in agreement.

"You can be the guest of honor! After all, what's tea without a scrumptious pastry?"

"M-Muffet!" a voice came from behind him. Mar felt a wave of relief wash over him as he recognized it. "L-leave him alone. He's with me!"

The spider-creature frowned slightly, seeming disappointed. She straightened up, looking over at Alphys and Hapstablook, who had just entered the hallway. "Apologies, Alphys," Muffet smiled politely, though hardly sincerely. "It's around lunch time, so we were just getting hungry. You know how it is."

"Y-yes, but you'll have to find a different snack!" Although Alphys was stammering just as much as usual, the nervousness had gone from her face. She stood with her back straight, staring Muffet down unwaveringly. Mar was surprised at her sudden change in demeanor.

"It would seem to be that way," Muffet sighed. She snapped her fingers and a dozen spiders crawled forward.

Mar shrieked, flinching back as they headed towards him, but the spiders simply removed the web tangled around his leg before crawling back to the shadows.

Muffet herself jumped nimbly onto a large web in the center of the room, sitting down casually. "You may go, deary," she gestured to him.. Her face was serious but there was a malicious glint in her eyes that made Mar's skin crawl.

"T-thank you," Alphys gave her a curt nod before helping Mar to his feet and taking the lead down the hall.

They had almost reached the other side when a small spider dangled down from a strand of web and perched itself on Mar's shoulder. "Goodbye human," the tiny creature whispered into his ear. Mar practically jumped out of his skin, having not noticed the spider until then. He ran from the room as fast as he could, a thousand tiny laughs echoing behind him.

"Are you alright?" Alphys asked once they were safely outside.

"Y-yeah." Mar was the one who'd stuttered this time, pale as a sheet.

"Sh-she's not as bad as she pretends to be," Alphys told him.

Mar wasn't so sure.

The scientist led them through the remaining paths and up a flight of stairs. "T-this is it!" she said eagerly.

They had paused in front of a large, elegant looking building. Hapstablook's eyes widened at the sight. "What is this place?" he asked with an awestruck tone.

"I-It's an apartment building," Alphys replied. "B-but there's an elevator that leads straight to the capitol in there! Anyone c-can use it so…"

"Thank you!" Mar beamed at her.

Alphys blushed when she saw how grateful the boy was. "I-It's nothing," she shuffled her feet happily. "I'm, um, g-glad I could help!"

"What is that delicious aroma?" Hapstablook spoke up.

"T-there's a restaurant in there, too."

"Wonderful!" Hapstablook flashed a smile. "How about we all get a bite to eat, darlings? Food is on me!"

"I'm sorry," Mar said quietly, wishing he could stay. It had been a long time since he'd eaten anything and his stomach was starting to growl in protest. "But I really need to get to the capitol right away."

"Not a problem, darling!" Hapstablook waved away his apology. "I can meet you there later! Once you've gotten your friend you can come back here. I'll wait for you, darling, and then we can all go and explore the capitol together! Alphys, care to join me for a meal?"

"I-I um," the scientist smiled nervously. "Sure!"

"Excellent!" Hapstablook returned her smile. "Then I shall see you later, Mar. Toodles!" With that the ghost floated through the building's doors.

"I-It was n-nice to meet you!" Alphys smiled before hurrying after him.

Mar stood outside for a moment. The air was strangely cool for a place in the middle of a sea of lava. He sucked in a refreshing breath before pushing through the double doors. The lobby was brightly lit with a fountain bubbling in the center. Mar caught one last glance of Alphys and Hapstablook as they were entering the restaurant on the left. In the far right corner he could see the elevator doors. Not wanting to wait another second, Mar crossed the room quickly and pressed the button. The doors opened immediately and the boy stepped inside. Mar took a deep breath before pressing the up button. This was it. He was going to see Dane!

 **Author's Note: Thank you so much for my first two reviews! I'm glad that you like my story and character and I shall try my best to keep everything interesting! I'm that there has been more of a gap between chapter updates this week but my school runs on trimesters so we're having finals. I'll try to update as much as I can!**


	6. Dane

When the doors opened, Mar was amazed at what he saw. Tall buildings of simple yet ornate architecture rose up as far as the eye could see. He was on a walkway elevated above the city, and below hundreds of monsters shuffled around, going about their daily business. Here, however, he was completely alone, and the boy couldn't help but feel grateful for the solitude. With Dane so close by he had no more time for distractions.

Mar didn't have the slightest idea how to get to the king's castle, but the walkway appeared to only go one direction along the city scape. There was a path leading into a walled passage, but Mar decided he stood a better chance at trying the walkway first. The boy gazed in wonder at the vendors selling food and trinkets below, the children playing in the streets, and the small red trolley that rattled through the crowds. He was so fascinated that he almost didn't notice when the walkway ended abruptly with a doorway on his right. A warm, promising glow emanated from the door and Mar, transfixed, stepped through it.

He entered into a hall gleaming with gold. The walls, the tiled floor, the giant pillars, and even the window trimmings were all gold. The light spilling in through the rows of windows lit up all that it fell upon in a magnificent fiery blaze. Mar couldn't help but feel breathless at the sight. He walked down the hall slowly, momentarily forgetting the reason he was there as he took his time to admire every detail. He was disappointed when the room ended, but his mind returned to his friend and he hurried on, irritated that he had let his mind wander so easily.

The next hallway was far more drab. It was made of gray bricks with some ivy hanging down the walls here and there. A stone sign had the message _THRONE ROOM_ carved into it.

Mar headed through the large doorway next to the sign. Beyond this doorway was a garden. Golden flowers took up the center of the garden, lying before a throne lined with purple velvet. Mar recognized the flowers as the same ones he had woken up on back in the ruins. However, this time the boy did not stop to wonder at his surroundings, instead hurrying next room was, once again, underwhelming, just a dull gray passage. However, a bright light seemed to be coming from an ancient looking archway.

Mar had barely reached its threshold when he froze. The light was filtering down a large, high ceilinged corridor, throwing a long shadow across a small lump that lay before him. The boy felt an unbearable feeling of dread as he approached the shape. No. It couldn't be. He had come all this way. He had learned Dane was alive from Toriel and Sans. Dane was alive. This wasn't Dane. This wasn't Dane. This wasn't-  
Light hit the other side of the figure with a harsh contrast to the side shrouded by shadow. Bright red shone like a carpet on the floor, and the figure's face, its completely still, unmoving face, was twisted in eternal pain. With a sharp cry Mar fell to the floor beside his friend, ignoring the crimson staining his knees.

"Dane!" he cried pitifully. "Dane!" With trembling hands, Mar reached out and shook the boy, gently at first, then harder and harder. He let out a broken sound from somewhere deep in his throat as he saw his friend's body flop around like a rag doll, eyes gazing lifelessly at nothing. "No," Mar whispered, tears streaming down his face. "No!" His voice had raised to a desperate scream, seeming to claw at the air around him. "Dane, no!"

He flung himself upon the limp child, wrapping his arms tightly around his friend and sobbing into his cold, silent chest. "Please! Please, someone, anyone! Help him! Save him! Please!"

But no one came.

"It's my fault," Mar mumbled into the boy's T-shirt. "It's my fault, it's my fault, it's my fault! I made him go up on the mountain. I killed him. It's my fault."

"Well, if you put it that way, I guess it is kind of your fault," a cheery voice spoke up behind him.

Mar jumped, eyes flying open like an injured animal that had been cornered. He hugged his friend protectively to his chest, shrinking backwards. At first he couldn't see anything that could've spoken to him, but then a golden flower, concealed next to the doorway, spoke up once more.

"Don't sweat it though, kiddo. I've got a solution that'll fix all your problems!"

"Go away!" Mar screamed, too blinded by pain to understand what the flower had said. "Get away from here!" His voice had reached a pitch seemingly impossible to achieve by humans and he looked positively mad with grief, pure and unbridled rage overflowing from every ounce of his being.

"Okay, have it your way," the flower shrugged. "I was just going to offer you a real chance to save your friend, but if you're sure you like him better dead, than have fun with the corpse."

"Wait!" Mar had finally registered what the flower was saying. "I-I'm sorry," he stammered between sobs. "I didn't mean it. Please tell me!"

"Now we're talking!" the flower grinned. "Ever heard of resets, kid?"

"Resets?" Mar repeated, not sure what the flower was getting at.

"Sure, resets! A chance to start all over again with a completely blank slate. No questions asked! There is just one catch though…" The flower paused for dramatic effect.

"What?" Mar asked impatiently.

"You won't remember anything that happened from the point you fell down here onwards."

Mar was silent for a moment, thinking it over. "But, if I don't remember anything, won't all this just repeat all over again. Won't Dane-" Here he broke off, words changing into a loud sob.

"Not to worry, friend!" the flower's grin widened. "I am the one thing whose memory won't reset. I'll just pop up, tell you what's going on, and bingo! You and your friend can skip happily home!"

Mar narrowed his tear-filled eyes. "How can I trust you?"

"Well, golly. I'm hurt," the flower made an offended face. "Here I am, helping you save your friend, and you don't even trust little old me."

Mar let out a despairing sigh. He didn't see how he had any choice in the matter. If it meant there was a chance that he could save Dane, he would do anything. "Alright," he said.

"It's done then!" The flower's smile suddenly turned crooked and his voice raspy like some creature from a nightmare.

Mar froze in horror at the sight, but before he could do anything he felt an awful sensation rising in his chest as his stomach seemed to be wrenching upwards. He couldn't feel Dane anymore, or the cavern floor for that matter, and it had gone completely dark all around him. The last thing he heard before his mind shattered into tiny bits was that awful voice.

"See you on the flip-side, kid!"

 **Author's Note:** **I'm sorry that this one was so short, but like I said, it's finals week and this seemed like the perfect spot to cut off the chapter. Don't worry, the story's not over yet!**


	7. Restart

"Once we're finished here could you bring out one more order? I'm bringing Papyrus something to eat also."

"You got it," Grillby nodded, turning to head back towards the bar.

"Oh, wait!" Sans called after him. "I almost forgot! No ketchup on that one."

"One order of burger and fries, no ketchup," Grillby mumbled before returning to the front of the room.

Sans turned back to Mar. "Ketchup?" He offered the bottle.

Mar shook his head, seeing that the burgers came with the condiment already on them.

"Suit yourself." Sans downed the whole bottle like he was drinking soda. Mar watched quietly, his stomach feeling a little queasy at the sight. He was pretty hungry, though, so he didn't let it stop him from eating.

"What brings you to Snowdin?" Sans asked, pausing a moment from inhaling his own meal.

"I'm looking for a friend," Mar told him. He shifted uncomfortably under the skeleton's stare.

"The one that passed through yesterday? What was his name... Dane?"

At the sound of his friend's name Mar smiled excitedly, nodding to confirm Sans' statement.

"He's headed for the capital," Sans told him. " I can tell you the way to Waterfall if you'd like. I led him there just a few hours ago."

"Thank you!" Mar exclaimed. The thought of seeing Dane again made a rush of nervous excitement pass through his body.

Just then Sans leaned in closer to the boy, speaking softly. "If I tell you though, you have to promise me one thing. Don't ever come back."

Mar watched in horror as the skeleton's eyes became dark and hollow. They seemed to stare straight into his soul, filling the boy up with dread.

"Do we understand each other?" Sans had grown impatient by Mar's prolonged silence.

Mar nodded timidly, worried that the skeleton might try to attack him at any moment.

However, the light returned to Sans' eye sockets as though nothing had happened and he sat back, grinning. "Good. Then let's hurry up so we can get you on your way."

Mar wasn't all that hungry anymore, little shivers creeping down his back at the memory of those eyes. He waited as Sans enjoyed his food. Just as the skeleton swallowed the last fry, Grillby reappeared with a paper bag. "Thanks Grill," Sans grinned. "Put it on my tab." Sans checked the bag to make sure everything was there before standing up and heading out the door, Mar having to hurry to keep up.

Once they had reached the skeleton's house, Sans stopped. "I would take you out of town to make sure you didn't, you know, get lost," he winked. "But I by the time I get back, Papyrus' food will be cold. Just keep following the road straight on ahead. There'll be bunch of falling snow and a cave. Inside the cave is a cool hotdo-, I mean, sentry station. Once you see that, you're in Waterfall. Keep heading down the path and you'll do fine."

Mar nodded, starting out in the direction Sans had indicated. He was all too eager to get away from the sinister skeleton.

"Oh, and Mar," Sans called out behind him.

The boy turned around only to find himself staring straight into the depths of those cold, black eyes.

"I'd say come back anytime, but you know how it is," Sans grinned. "Just remember that you're not welcome here. Unless you want to have a bad time." With that, Sans disappeared into the warm glow of his cabin, calling Papyrus' name.

Relief washed over Mar now that he had finally escaped the skeleton's gaze. He followed Sans' instructions, entering into a cave that loomed in the rock up ahead. Sure enough, a "sentry station" occupied the first room. Beneath the floor water rushed into the darkness, and next to the station stood a large, pale blue flower. It was unlike anything Mar had ever seen before. Even the stem was blue. Curious, Mar approached the plant, reaching out to touch it.

"Remember your promise."

Mar jumped, spinning around. He expected to see Sans behind him but no one was there. Deciding to hurry on ahead before the skeleton attacked him, Mar tried to break into a run. Instead he tripped over the flower and fell face first onto the ground.

"Remember you promise."

Again Sans' voice filled the room and Mar glanced frantically around, still unable to locate the skeleton. Struck by a thought, Mar reached out and touched the flower.

"Remember your promise."

Now Mar was thoroughly confused. Was Sans able to communicate through the flower? Was he just trying to scare him?

"Sans?" Mar asked uncertainly. He touched the flower again.

"Sans?"

The boy jumped, startled at hearing his own voice repeated back at him. He tried once more just to confirm and, sure enough, the flower repeated whatever he said. This only left him with even more questions. Had Sans left that message for Mar? How was that possible when Mar had been with him since the moment they met a little while ago? And if not him, then who was he talking to? Dane, maybe?

Mar grew excited by the thought that Dane might be nearby. Forgetting the flower, he picked himself up and hurried into the next room. A rushing waterfall blocked his path carrying chunks of ice with it in its eternal plunge to the darkness below. Some stairs led down into the shadows and Mar descended them swiftly, hoping for a dry way across. Instead, Mar found another flower. Curious about what this one had to say, he brushed the petals with his fingertips. The boy almost jumped right over the edge when his own disembodied voice filled the air.

"Dane, if you come back this way, it's me, Mar. I'm looking for you right now, so if you hear this, please go back to the ruins where you fell. Toriel is really nice, and I'll come find you there."

It took several moments for Mar to register what he was hearing. None of it made sense. He'd never been here before, much less said any of those words. Then again, it was actually a pretty good idea to use the weird flowers to relay a message in case Dane came here. But that still didn't explain how his voice had gotten there in the first place. Maybe he was just having some bizarre dream. Mar pinched himself but not only did he not wake up, his skin felt quite real and in pain from the action.

He shook himself, quickly ascending the stairs once more. Confusing though this was, he didn't have time to sit and ponder. Dane was out there somewhere, and Mar needed to find him. He dashed across the waterfall, dodging between the falling ice. In the next room he found a sign saying _When four bridge seeds align in the water, they will sprout._ The boy glanced around, spotting four strange seeds in a small opening in the wall. He quickly lined them up one at a time in the water and, true to the sign's words, their petals unfolded to make a way across the rushing current. In the next chamber it appeared that someone had already laid out the seeds, and he crossed over the petal bridge without pausing.

Stars greeted Mar when he passed through the next doorway. Astonished, he gazed at the glittering spectacle over head. However, upon examination the boy discovered that they weren't stars at all, but rather shining stones set into the ceiling high above him. The pale blue flowers blossomed from the floor here and there, and a sign across from him spelled out _the Wishing Room_. Mar chose the brightest stone above him and poured all his hopes of finding Dane into it.

The hall branched left up ahead but both passages dead ended on a wall. Mar thought about doubling back to make sure he hadn't missed anything, but as soon as he had formulated this thought, a doorway suddenly opened up in the stone. Mar leaped back in surprise, but he shrank away even further when he noticed a tall, dark figure looming in the opening. Luckily for him the figure hadn't noticed him yet, so the boy turned around and ran. He had barely even taken a step, however, when he found himself falling forward, his arms reaching out last minute to catch himself before he hit the ground. Glancing back to see what he had tripped over, Mar saw something bright glittering next to his foot. It was the stone he had wished upon just a few moments ago. He recognized it from how brightly it glowed compared to the others. The rock must've been shaken loose from the ceiling when the door opened.

Mar was about to get to his feet when he heard a heavy, metallic thud behind him. He glanced over his shoulder once more, but this time a far less pretty sight greeted him. The figure was looming over him. Now that he could see it clearly it was even more menacing than before. The creature was entirely clad in a dark suit of armor with a helmet obscuring its face. Mar was frozen in horror, his eyes wide as he watched the thing raise its spear.

"Get to your feet, human!" it growled. Its voice was warped by the helmet, which amplified the volume so that it hurt the boy's ears.

However, this did bring Mar back to his senses, and, without waiting another moment, he took off. Heavy metallic footsteps rang out behind him as he dashed into the previous room. Mar had just reached the other side of the flower bridge when something grazed leg. He felt a tug on his pants and again fell forward. There was a rush of air as something grazed his other leg. Confused, he glanced behind himself to see two spears, each having barely missed his skin but tore straight through his pants, pinning his legs to the ground. Mar grasped one of the spears, frantically pulling at it in an attempt to free himself.

"Stand up!" the harsh voice of the figure rang out.

The boy found himself frozen in terror once more as he watched a pair of metallic boots walk into view, stopping directly in front of him. He squirmed around in vain, tears blurring his vision as those awful boots glinted before him.

"I said get up!" the figure snarled.

Sobbing, Mar struggled to stand, but it was hard to move with the spears pinning down his legs. He lost balance and fell back onto the cold ground in a pitiful heap, a loud sob shaking his body as helplessness consumed him. Impatient now, the figure grabbed him by the back of his shirt collar and yanked him to his feet, tearing his pants even further in doing so.

"Look at me," it ordered.

Mar turned his head away in a feeble act of defiance. Something sharp pushed against his throat and he yelped in terror.

"I said look at me! Now!" the figure yelled.

Slowly, the boy turned his head, the tip of the spear held to his throat prodding him on. Still, he kept his eyes cast down, too afraid to stare into that cold, unfeeling helmet.

"Look into my eyes," the monster commanded.

By now Mar was shaking all over. It took all his strength to keep himself from collapsing again. Barely able to focus through the veil of tears, he tilted his head up. Somewhere in the depths behind the thing's thick metal visor he could make out a dull glint.

"Good," the figure growled. "Now you may at least die with some dignity."

Mar didn't even have time to beg for mercy. The next thing he knew there was a white hot pain in his stomach. He coiled inwards as something hot and wet soaked into his shirt. The bitter taste of iron welled up in his mouth and he choked on it, gagging as his lungs heaved unsteadily like they were on the verge of collapse. His wide eyes barely registered the flick of the monster's wrist, followed by the smooth arc of the spear as it pulled free from him, leaving a stream of blood in its wake. He fell back, hitting the ground so hard that his already scarce breath was crushed out of him. Mar's vision was beginning to fade as violent coughing took his body, causing him to roll onto his side and vomit up blood. The last thing he heard before the pain tore him from existence was the firm words: "This was necessary." Then the pain stopped, and so did his heart.

Mar felt himself falling forward, and he reached his hands out to catch himself instinctively. What? Why was he falling? Where did the pain go? Just a moment before he had been lying on his back, life and blood pouring from his body with each fresh wave of agony. Now he was facing the ground and all pain had disappeared like it was only a bad memory. He glanced around frantically. Stars sparkled above him, and one particularly bright star lay on the ground next to his foot, its smooth surface brushing his ankle. Just then the armor clad figure rounded the corner, glaring down at him. It raised its spear, but didn't have time for anything else.

Still unaware of what was happening, Mar scrambled up and took off. The sight of that spear being raised once again drove all confusion, and indeed, any thoughts at all from his mind. In their place was a single, eternal instinct: survive. His feet flew across the ground and, upon reaching the next room, Mar dove straight into the rushing stream. Shocked back into reality by the coldness of the water, he tried to grasp frantically at one of the leaves on the flower bridge. His fingers just missed and he was pushed down the stream. A spear shot passed him, missing by mere inches. He glanced up just in time to see another one flying at him, dead on point, when his head smashed into the wooden bridge behind him and his world plunged into instant darkness.


	8. Awake

Water. The sound of rushing water. The cold feeling of wet clothes as they clung to skin. Something soft pressing against his back. Blood. Clothes wet with blood. Rushing, not of water, but of the blood shooting through the veins in his ears. Pain. So much pain. Death crouching gently on his back, tempting him with its numbing release. Fear.

Mar opened his eyes, a strangled cry escaping his lips. He clawed at his stomach, probing, searching for the hole that the spear had left. His heart was racing with adrenaline and he swallowed down air as though he had been drowning. Nothing. His fingers couldn't locate the wound, just smooth, unbroken skin. But it must be there. He could feel the pain, fresh within him. Mar sat up and yanked his shirt straight off of himself. Still nothing. There wasn't even any blood. This didn't make sense! He had felt the spear thrust straight through him, seen it pulled back, writhed in agony upon the floor as he died. The pain he felt now wasn't nearly as strong as it had been then, but it was still there. So where was the wound?

Just then Mar realized the pain wasn't coming from his stomach, but his head. He clutched at his temples, wincing at the bitter migraine. His last memories came flooding in and he recalled suddenly finding himself back on the ground in the wishing room. He had run from the figure once more and plunged into the stream. A spear had been about to strike him right in the face when he'd felt a sudden sharp pain at the back of his head and then… nothing. Then he'd woken up here.

Mar looked around to determine exactly where here was. He was resting on a bed of golden flowers just like the one's he had fallen onto in the ruins. Only this place definitely wasn't the ruins. It appeared to be another area of Waterfall considering that the entire expanse of the wall on his left was one long waterfall, not to mention that the ground beneath him was flooded. The golden flowers grew on top of an array of wooden platforms raised just a bit above water level. At the other end of the room he could see a doorway, bordered on the right side by two tall heaps of garbage.

The boy pulled his damp, though blood-free shirt back on and got unsteadily to his feet, head screaming in protest at even the slightest movement. Carefully he lowered himself down into the water. However, his mind was filled with more than just pain. What was happening? He'd been run through by a spear. He had been dying. Where had the wound gone? And why had he woken up back in the wishing room again at that exact moment when he'd tripped over the shining stone? It was almost as if being stabbed was some awful dream. But whether this was true or not, he could still remember it. The shock that hit him as the razor point parted his flesh, the agony that consumed him whole, and the blood. All the blood. No, it had definitely happened. It was real. So why was it that he was alive and fine except for where he'd hit his head?

During this time that he was thinking, Mar had also been wading across the room. He passed through the doorway to find a smaller chamber with a waterfall cascading out of the darkness above, flowing across the floor, then plunging down into the shadows below. More trash was piled against the walls and an empty platform took up the center of the room. The boy waded around it, staying on the side away from the drop off, and passed into the next hallway. Here the hall turned a corner before widening out. Garbage piles rose from the water at random intervals. Once in awhile Mar passed a distinctive item; a beat-up desk top computer, an empty cooler, a DVD case covered in claw marks. Mar swallowed nervously at the sight of those long gashes in the plastic. His imagination raced as he tried to picture what kind of terrifying creature could've possibly left those.

In front of him a path rose out of the water and he followed it, passing through another doorway. Beyond this one lay some sort of town square. Three paths lay before him with a smaller path at his left and the main road leading off to his right. The boy quickly peered down the narrower path only to see that it was cut in half by a stream of water. A large yellow bird stood at the dead end with its back turned to him, grooming its feathers. The bird seemed friendly enough, but after Mar's encounter with Sans and the armored figure he wasn't all that eager to test this assumption. The boy quietly slipped away, instead taking the far left path. This road led to a strange house that was built to look like some sort of evil fish. If monsters were real, then it wasn't that far of a stretch to assume that a house could eat someone. Mar left the area quickly, feeling as though the house's windows were watching him like eyes.

The middle path led to two more houses, though these were much friendlier looking. They mirrored each other in every way except for color. However, Mar didn't want to risk meeting whoever lived inside them, so he hurried along down the path to their right. The boy leapt back when he noticed several large snails in a fenced in area ahead of him. He observed them quietly for a while but when they showed no signs of being anything other than regular snails he stepped cautiously into the open.

"Oh," a voice came out of thin air.

Mar almost jumped right out of his skin, spinning in all directions to try and locate its source.

"You aren't a usual customer…"

There wasn't anything there. Not wanting to be attacked by something he couldn't even see, Mar braced himself to take off running. However, right then a pale ghost wearing headphones materialized in front of him. Again the boy jumped, backing into a wall. Silence followed as the two stared at each other. Finally the ghost cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Hello. Welcome to Blook family snail farm. My name is Napstablook and… yeah. I'm the only one on duty right now…"

Mar observed him in silence, ready to run at the first sign of danger.

"My cousin works here too," Napstablook continued. "He's just… not here. I mean, not here right now…"

More silence. Mar wondered if the part about the cousin was some kind of veiled threat, suggesting that this cousin was somewhere nearby. Napstablook didn't seem sinister, but after his earlier experience Mar wasn't prepared to simply trust that.

"Do you… have a name?" Napstablook broke the silence once more. "I mean of course you do, I was just wondering if you'd like to share it… But it's fine if you don't! You don't have to tell me if you don't want."

"I'm Mar," the boy spoke slowly, his eyes still taking in the ghost's every move.

"Do you… not like me, Mar?" Napstablook asked, looking sad.

"No, no!" Mar said quickly, finally convinced that Napstablook wasn't a threat. "You just startled me, that's all."

"I'm sorry." The ghost looked crestfallen.

"It's fine!" Mar insisted, not wanting the monster to be sad. "You said this was a snail farm, right? It's very lovely!"

Napstablook looked a bit happier. "...Really? It's been the Blook family business since we settled here. There used to be a lot more of us… But most of my cousins moved on to other things. Now it's just me and Hapstablook…" The ghost took a closer look at Mar. "You know, there was a monster that looked like you that passed through here just… when was it? Only a few moments ago… He wasn't a regular customer either."

"He did!" Mar burst out, consumed with excitement. "Where did this monster go?"

Napstablook looked taken aback at the boy's reaction. He thought a moment before answering. "I think… I mean, he probably took the main road. He said something… He wanted to see the king."

"Thank you!" Mar called out, breaking into a run down the path.

"Oh… you're leaving…?" Napstablook said, sounding crestfallen once more. However, Mar didn't have time to stop and comfort them again. "...Was it something I said?" the ghost mumbled to himself just before they disappeared from Mar's view.

The main road branched into three paths, one continuing straight ahead, one leading to the right, and another passing through a doorway on the left that had a sign inscribed in some sort of ancient glyphs hanging above it. Not trusting the path with the mysterious glyphs, Mar first checked the branch on his left. Once again he was startled by the sight of a strange figure. A river flowed in front of him and, standing in a small wooden boat at the edge of the water, was a tall creature obscured by a dark, hooded cloak. Since the creature wasn't facing him, Mar assumed that he hadn't been spotted and was about to hurry away when it called to him.

"Mar," the creature said. It's voice was unlike anything the boy had ever heard before. It sounded almost like a whisper, and yet it carried perfectly clearly across the room. "I can take you to Dane."

Mar froze. "H-how do you know my name?" he stammered. "And Dane. Did you meet him?"

"No," the monster answered, ignoring his first question. "He followed the main path without wavering. He'll be at the elevator soon. I can take you to him."

"If you haven't met him then how do you know where he is?" Mar challenged the monster, growing more and more suspicious by the second.

"If a skeleton can crack a joke and a snail can wear a suit, if a fish can fight and a flower can cry, can't a riverperson know? But I know this, a house can't bite."

A house can't bite? Could the creature somehow know of the boy's earlier worry when he saw the strange monster fish house? But perhaps they were right. Despite all those other phrases that made no sense to Mar, he at least understood the part about the skeleton being in reference to Sans. Really, if monsters existed then it wouldn't be that far of a stretch to think that one of them had some sort of powers allowing them to see things beyond their vision. All Mar wanted was to see Dane again. If this creature said that he could take him to Dane, then who was he to refuse?

"Alright," Mar finally answered. He approached the hooded figure slowly. It made no sudden movements, so he climbed into the boat. The creature pushed off from shore, and the boat began to move swiftly with the current all on its own.

"Tra la la," the riverperson sang softly. The tune echoed eerily off the stone walls. "The first was not the last but the last will be the first."

Mar pondered over this strange message as they traveled. He could make no sense of it and eventually wrote it off as meaningless. The creature sang quietly during the rest of their journey but uttered no other words. Finally the boat finally came to a halt at a landing with a staircase leading up. Mar disembarked and headed for the stairs. He expected the riverperson to give him some sort of cryptic advice or else at least call out a farewell, but they remained silent so

Mar continued forward.

A heat wave instantly hit the boy as he reached the top. He was on an elevated stone walkway and all around him lava bubbled. On his right an enormous, ominous building stood, adorned with bright red letters spelling out _LAB_. He decided right then that that place was to be avoided. The only other paths lay to the left and in front of him. Having to start somewhere, Mar headed straight first, wishing the creature in the boat had given him instructions.

To his luck, upon rounding the bend in the path, Mar spotted the elevator that the riverperson had mentioned earlier. That wasn't all he saw, though. Standing before the elevator with his back to Mar was a sandy haired boy in a T-shirt that had a tear in the left shoulder. Mar's breath caught in his throat at the sight and he could hear his heart beating in his ears. He watched, awestruck, as the boy reached out and pressed a button to open the elevator doors. Mar came to his senses just as the boy was stepping inside.

"Dane!" he screamed.


	9. Promises

"Mar?"

Wide brown eyes lit up in recognition, turning to face the child. Mar stared in awe for a moment, unable to accept the reality that Dane was here, really here, right in front of him. Only hours ago Mar had presumed he was dead, and now here he was, alive and well. Tears blurred Mar's eyes as he broke into a run. Dane took a half step back, confused as to what exactly was happening, but when Mar threw his arms around the sandy-haired boy, he returned his embrace.

"Mar?" Dane repeated. "What are you doing here? How did you-"

"I'm so glad you're alive!" Mar interrupted, his voice coming out high-pitched and shaky between the sobs.

Dane pulled back when he heard the tone in his friend's voice, surprised to find him crying. "Are you alright? What happened to you? Why-" Dane paused a moment, eyes traveling to the side of Mar's head. "Mar, why are you bleeding?"

This time it was Mar's turn to be surprised. He reached up to touch the back of his head and, sure enough, drying blood clung to his hair. A swollen bump occupied the back of his head as well. It must've been from where he'd crashed into the wooden bridge while being swept downstream. The painful migraine had disappeared so quickly that he hadn't thought to check his head for any wounds. In fact, he felt perfectly fine, except for when he put pressure on the bump.

"This," Mar smiled through his tears. "This is nothing."

"It's not nothing," Dane frowned. "It must really hurt. You're crying!"

Mar laughed at the boy's comment. "That's not why I'm crying." He clung to Dane as though he were afraid his friend would vanish if he let go, pushing his forehead into Dane's shoulder.

"What is it then?" Dane was sounding more concerned by the moment. "What happened?"

"I thought you were dead!" Mar sobbed, trembling all over.

"What? Why?"

"You climbed the mountain and you didn't come down for days."

"Days?" Dane exclaimed. "I've only been here a few hours!"

"No," Mar shook his head, face still buried in the taller boy's shoulder. "It was days. They sent search parties to look for you on the mountain, but no one ever found you. I thought you'd fallen off a cliff or were eaten by bears or got lost and-"

"Hey," Dane cut him off, pulling back once more so that he could look Mar in the eye. He placed a firm hand on each of Mar's shoulders and bent down a bit, since Mar was hanging his head to try and hide his tear stained face. "I'm okay, alright?"

Mar nodded slowly and Dane pulled the smaller boy against him once more, holding on to Mar tightly to reassure him. This action caused a fresh wave of sobs to pour from Mar's eyes and mouth. He clutched Dane's faded old shirt for dear life, ecstatic at the feeling of his friend's real, solid form beneath his arms once more. One of Dane's hands was holding the back of Mar's head, causing a fresh sting of pain to wash over him from where his fingers touched the swollen lump. Mar didn't care.

"I think you hit your head pretty hard," Dane spoke up worriedly. He let out a low laugh before adding, "Maybe we both did. I still can't believe what I see half the time down here."

Mar returned his laugh. "I know what you mean. Oh!" he cried out, the bitter memory of the spear slicing through his guts once again resurfacing. "Are you alright?" Mar pulled away to inspect his friend closely. "Did you run into trouble? You aren't hurt anywhere, are you?"

"No," Dane smiled reassuringly. "There was this one creepy skeleton, but he didn't try to start a fight or anything. He just threatened me and showed me the way out of that snowy place. I could've taken him. However, I did run into another monster a while back who said she was going to kill me, but I got rid of her easily. Turns out having to fight off all those bullies at school payed off after all."

Mar shivered as he remembered Sans' dark, empty eyes. Maybe Dane could've taken him. His friend was very strong. But then again, there was something very sinister about that skeleton. Either way, Mar was just glad that Dane hadn't had to fight him.

"There was another monster that chased me for a while after I took care of that other one. It was wearing a bunch of armor like those medieval knights. But I just doubled back for a bit and eventually lost it."

Mar sucked in an unsteady breath as he thought of the dull, unfeeling glint concealed within the shadows of that monster's helmet. He could remember those cold, monotonous words as he lay there dying; " _This was necessary."_ He still didn't understand exactly what had happened back there after he'd been stabbed by the spear.

"Mar?" Dane spoke up, concerned by the far off look in his friend's eyes. "Is everything alright?"

Mar shook himself to clear his head. He didn't usually keep secrets from Dane but there was no point in telling him something that even Mar couldn't explain. "Yeah, of course," Mar smiled, wiping away his old tears on his arm. "You're here."

"Don't be such a sap," Dane grinned, ruffling Mar's hair. The smaller boy winced as Dane's fingers brushed the lump on his head once more, but he didn't mind. A little pain was well worth it so long as Dane was beside him. Mar playfully punched his friend in the arm in return. "Think you can take me on, do you?" Dane laughed. He easily lifted the smaller boy off the ground and pretended to throw him onto his stomach, though in reality he just gently lowered him back down. Dane pressed a knee lightly to Mar's back and pinned his hands behind him, Mar laughing the whole time. He'd missed being able to roughhouse with Dane like this.

"I give up," Mar smiled. "Please spare me, oh great and powerful Dane."

"Just don't forget who's boss next time," Dane grinned, ruffling Mar's hair once more before helping him up. "Okay," Dane suddenly became serious. "We better get going. We still need to get out of here."

"Get out of here?" Mar repeated. "There's a way out?"

"You didn't even bother asking anyone where the exit was?" Dane sounded surprised.

"I was busy tracking you down."

"Man, kid. It's a good thing you got me looking out for you! If I wasn't down here you'd probably be trapped underground forever." Dane paused a moment, something seeming to cross his mind. "How did you get down here anyways?"

Mar looked away, trying to think of something to tell him. "I, um, I fell."

"Well no duh," Dane snorted. "But what were you even doing up on the mountain?"

"I went to look for you," Mar spoke quickly. "Then there was this big hole and I tripped and fell."

Dane studied his friend carefully, Mar shifting uncomfortably under his gaze. "You're lying, Mar," the sandy-haired boy finally spoke up.

"No I'm not!" Mar protested, though he felt guilty in doing so.

"Are too," Dane frowned. "You've always been a terrible liar. If you're telling the truth, why can't you look me in the eye?"

Mar didn't answer him, unable to come up with a good response. He still didn't meet his gaze, either.

"Mar," Dane's voice was very grave. "Did you jump?"

The boy remained silent.

"Mar," Dane sighed. "We talked about this. You can't just try and throw your life away like that!"

"Why not?" Mar mumbled bitterly. "I thought you were dead. What was the point in me being alive when you're not?"

"Everything! Giving those bullies some hell for me. Showing your parents that they were wrong to abandon you. Taking the world for everything its got and returning every punch it ever tried to throw at you. You can't just give up! What about everything you talked about? You wanted to travel the world and help people, didn't you? You wanted to write books and become famous and build a mansion made out of chocolate!"

"But that's the point!" Mar exclaimed. "I don't want to do any of that stuff without you!"

"And I don't want you to die, Mar!" Dane shouted back at him. "You promised me you wouldn't die, not ever! Remember when we made that deal? You said no matter what, you wouldn't die. You promised! What do you think I'd do if you ever died? I don't care if I was dead already, I'd come back from the grave and haunt you every day!"

"What if you couldn't come back? What if I never saw you again? I can't live without you, Dane, I need you!"

There was a long silence. Finally Dane let out a sigh. He threw an arm around Mar's shoulder and pulled him close. "I know," he whispered. "I need you too. And that's why you can't ever die, Mar. Promise me. Promise me that, even if I die, you won't."

"But I-"

"Promise me." Dane was pleading with him now, a sad, desperate look clouding his eyes.

Mar had never heard Dane beg for anything before. He had too much pride to do something like that. The boy stared into his brown eyes for a long while before finally letting out a sigh of his own. "Okay."

"Say I promise."

"I promise."

"to not," Dane continued.

"to not," Mar echoed him.

"ever die."

"ever die."

"Even if my best friend,-"

"Even if my best friend,-"

"Dane,-"

"Dane,-"

"the coolest guy ever,-"

"Really?" Mar rolled his eyes, though he couldn't disguise his smile.

"Say it!" Dane insisted.

"Fine," Mar caved in. "The coolest guy-"

"Ever," Dane reminded him.

"ever-"

"dies."

Here Mar paused, swallowing back the painful lump that rose in his throat. He was very aware of Dane's eyes on him, waiting patiently. "Dies," the boy finally choked out. He turned his face away quickly so that Dane wouldn't see the tears welling up in his eyes yet again.

However, Dane didn't need to see to know. He wrapped his arms tightly around Mar, leaning down a bit to rest his chin on Mar's shoulder. The smaller boy returned his embrace gratefully, resting his own head on Dane's shoulder as the tears fell from his eyes. "Thank you," Dane whispered to him. Mar let out a quiet cry in response, his voice muffled by Dane's shirt. In that moment, if he let go he felt certain the sandy-haired boy would be torn from him forever.

Eventually though, he did have to let go, and the two stood apart, facing each other. "Now," Dane broke the silence. "About that escape plan."

Mar nodded as Dane reached out to help wipe away his tears.

"It all starts with the king."


End file.
